Tangled in a Web
by 09Lakersluva24
Summary: When Bumblebee is captured by Airachnid and the Decepticons, the Autobots are forced to board the Nemesis and rescue their comrade. Along the way, Arcee will realize that the yellow scout means more to her than she previously thought. ArceexBumblebee Picture from
1. The Capture

Disclaimers: I don't own Transformers or any of these characters.

Note: Due to the fact that there is a lack of Arcee and Bumblebee stories, and because my readers have asked for more stories with these two paired up, I have written this story.

I hope you enjoy this story!

…...

Chapter 1: The Capture

It was the middle of the day in scorching hot Jasper, Nevada. The sun was beating down on the ground and it seemed like the rocky terrain had become a searing oven. No one would dare venture out into this devastating heat, except for two large Autobots and their two small human companions.

One the Autobots was a large yellow robot and the other was a smaller, slimmer dark blue robot.

The two humans were hiking quickly beside these two moving giants. One of the humans turned to the other and commented, "It sure is hot. We should have stayed back at base. I'm melting here."

"Because, Jack, Ratchet refused to watch you kids alone," the dark blue robot responded smirking.

"Why does Ratchet have to have moods sometimes?" he murmured irritably.

"Miko," the other human merely remarked shrugging his shoulders.

A few beeps rang out of the yellow robot. Normally, the shorter human boy would have translated for his yellow friend, but the other robot beat him to it.

"Bumblebee's right, see this as an opportunity to get out and exercise," she answered teasingly.

The other boy smiled as the boy named Jack scowled slightly, "Thanks Arcee, I didn't know you and Bumblebee had suddenly volunteered to become my secondary parents."

Arcee smirked then shrugged her metallic shoulders before turning to her companion, Bumblebee who beeped in amusement.

The other boy fixed his glasses before he cut in, "Jack, just don't think about the heat."

Bumblebee smiled down at the younger boy, Raf, as Jack grumbled something about how he gets air conditioning on his way back to the base.

"Fine, why don't you and Raf go stand under the shade beneath that cliff, and Bumblebee and I will finish recon as quickly as possible," Arcee offered as Bumblebee nodded.

"Shade! Finally!" Jack exclaimed as he ran over to the shack with Raf following chuckling.

Raf turned around and called out, "Be careful, Bee."

The yellow Autobot gave the young boy a thumbs up before turning and following his female comrade eagerly.

Jack sat down and brought the bottle of water he had brought to his lips. Drinking heavily, he then turned to Raf and offered the bottle to the younger boy. The younger boy shook his head and pointed to his own chilled water. Taking a sip, he sighed and wiped his mouth as they sat in peaceful silence.

Their eyes wandered towards the two Autobots who were chatting about something. Arcee was listening intently as Bumblebee spoke animatedly to his comrade.

"They've gotten closer," Jack remarked.

"Since the incident with Starscream, Bumblebee's been hanging around Arcee," Raf agreed, "It's sort of like he's trying to help her move on."

Jack nodded before taking another sip, "Arcee definitely is smiling more than before. I've even heard her laugh at something Bee said yesterday."

"I remember. It was a pretty funny joke."

"I wouldn't know," Jack returned.

Silence followed and the two boys lost sight of their guardians. This didn't alarm them, they were still nearby.

Just as Jack was about to close his eyes, something flashed in front of them. With a loud thump eight long legs landed gracefully in front of the two boys. Eyes widened in terror, and the two boys backed up as they gazed up into Airachnid's optics.

"Hello, Jack. And you must be Bumblebee's human," she remarked as she turned to Raf, "You'd make fine prizes; but today I'm after something a little bigger."

She smirked as she gazed around.

Suddenly, something slammed her into the rocks. She crashed into the solid wall and crumpled into a heap.

Recovering quickly, she found her attacker to be the Autobot scout.

"Ah, it's the Autobot bug," she stated with delight, "Wonderful. And is Arcee not far behind?"

He glared down at her with his cannons facing her. She then detected a new presence, Arcee. She was angrily directing her two blasters at the female Decepticon.

"Arcee, it's good to see you. I wanted you to be here when I stole away another one of your partners," she added lightly as she raised herself on her spider legs.

"Stay away from Jack," Arcee seethed.

"Whoever said anything about Jack?" Airachnid remarked smirking.

Arcee's eyes widened in surprise and before she could react, Airachnid had shot her with her spider web. Arcee was thrown back and stuck to the rocky cliff.

Airachnid then turned towards the yellow scout and, quick as lightning, pounced on Bumblebee. He swiftly stepped out of the way and grabbed her legs from behind. Then he swung her across the ground and into another rock wall. Seeing that he had knocked the female Decepticon unconscious, Bumblebee hurried over to where Arcee was struggling to free herself. The boys were assisting her in this endeavor and had managed to cut halfway into the spider web that held Arcee prisoner. Bumblebee beeped to the boys and Raf pulled Jack back as the yellow scout ripped the web off Arcee. He then lowered her down gently before looking straight into her optics and issuing what was obviously an order through a series of beeps and chirps.

"Bee wants us to leave and bridge ourselves to safety," Raf explained nervously.

"But we beat her, right?" Jack questioned the younger boy who shook his head.

"Bee says that she won't stay down for long; he was buying us some time," Raf explained as he stared up worriedly to his Autobot friend.

Arcee grew livid, "You do not order me around, and we both stay and take her down together!"

Jack realized that, although she wasn't as vengeful as the time before the Starscream incident, Arcee was not in full control of her temper at that moment.

Bumblebee jerked his head to the side then turned back to his Autobot comrade. He placed both of his servos on her metallic shoulders and stared hard at her. He beeped a message that caused Arcee's head to shoot down and nod reluctantly.

"What did he say?" Jack questioned Raf.

"He said that he can hold her off, and that our first responsibility is getting us to safely. But means he needs to hold Airachnid off," Raf explained as he looked up to Bumblebee who gave him a reassuring smile.

Bee then turned to a now subdued Arcee, who transformed into her motorcycle mode and ordered both boys to hop on. She then drove towards the ground bridge Bee had called for while he had been attempting to placate Arcee.

As they rode, Raf and Jack looked back to see Bumblebee fighting a now conscious Airachnid. He shot her in the legs which caused her to collapse on the ground. This gave him an opportunity to run after the others. But Airachnid was following him close behind.

He neared the others and Arcee and the boys were just about to enter the ground bridge.

That was until they noticed the appearance of Breakdown and Vehicons. Breakdown tackled Bumblebee to the ground. Bee turned his helm to his friends as they entered the bridge. Arcee turned around to run out and aid her friend when Bumblebee stared at her for a moment as he kicked Breakdown off and shot at a Vehicon coming near the bridge. As Arcee stared desperately at her friend, she wavered between disobeying her close friend and obeying him.

She couldn't bear the thought of losing him, so she began to walk out of the bridge.

She never noticed him bring his free servo to his helm and beep a request.

Suddenly, the bridge closed up and Arcee was standing in the Autobot base.

"Bumblebee!" she yelled.

…

Bumblebee shot at Breakdown and managed to knock him down in time to swerve around and catch Airachnid's sneak attack. He fought as well as he could and even considered transforming into his car mode and speeding off. Just as this though crossed his mind, however, something slammed into him from behind. He slipped into unconsciousness as his massive body crashed in the middle of Breakdown, Airachnid, and the Vehicons.

"Take him, Lord Megatron will appreciate the information this little Bee has to offer. Not to mention the amusement he'll bring," Airachnid said as she stroked Bee's face, "When I'm through with you, Arcee's going to have three partners dead."

…..

"We have to go back! Bee's in danger!" Arcee exploded at Ratchet, who ignored her as he searched for their missing comrade's life signal.

Exasperated, Arcee persisted, "Why the slag did you shut the ground bridge down? I could have gone back and saved him!"

"He told me to shut it down in order to protect you. And because he knew that you weren't in total control of your emotions when you saw Airachnid. And because your first responsibility was making sure the kids were safe. Bee would never forgive you if you chose to save him over others," Ratchet listed off irritated.

Arcee adopted a irritated silence in response to the medic's reasoning.

It was then that Optimus and Bulkhead entered from the ground bridge. They had been sent immediately after Arcee had returned with the two boys.

Arcee practically sprinted over to them and demanded, "Well? Where is he?"

"Unfortunately, we were too late," Optimus stated grimly.

"You don't mean he's…" Arcee choked back the words before she could finish her statement.

The three Autobots and the two boys turned their heads towards the medic who quickly cut in, "No, I can still detect his life signal. Bumblebee still lives."

"They took him away before we got there," Bulkhead added.

This did little to reassure Arcee, and she resumed her pacing.

"What's going to happen to him?" Raf asked agitated.

Arcee halted her pacing and bent down in front of Bumblebee's human friend. She looked straight into his human eyes and stated with a determined look, "We won't let anything happen. I'm not losing another one of us."

Her conviction managed to convince the young boy, who nodded and then launched himself on her leg, hugging it tightly. A few tears had formed and were now running down his face.

"Please save him," he pleaded as Arcee's expression softened and she began to stroke his back with her metallic finger.

"Don't worry, Rafael, we will. We will not abandon our friend to the Decepticons," Optimus assured.

…..

End of Chapter 1

I hope you enjoy this beginning. The action begins in the next chapter!

Please, please, please review!

Next up: Bumblebee as a prisoner and the Autobot's next moves for saving their friend!


	2. Imprisonment

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters and I certainly don't own Transformers.

Note: Thanks for the reviews. Here's chapter 2!

Please, please, please review!

…

Chapter 2: Imprisonment

Bumblebee groaned as he shook his helm and opened his optics. Peering around the darkly lit room, he began taking note of his surroundings. The lights were dimmed down, but he could still use his optics to see. He tried to use his feet to reach the ground, nothing. Looking down, he saw that the ground beneath his feet was empty; he was hanging from the roof. His legs had been webbed together so that he couldn't move them around.

Airachnid, he thought grimly.

He gazed up above his head to see his arms were in metal cuffs.

_Not too difficult to break through, neither is the webbing_, he noted.

Bumblebee, as Optimus's lead scout, had been trained to endure and escape from capture and torture. These were skills a scout needed to know in order to survive. Of course, it didn't hurt that he had been captured by Decepticons before. And managed to escape many times before.

As long as he managed to escape before anyone came in, then sneak out…

Before he could even begin to enact this escape plan, the door slid open.

In strolled in Airachnid; practically bouncing with glee. She strolled over to Bumblebee and propped herself up so that she was optic level with the yellow scout. Smirking, she tilted her head as stared he stared coldly back to her. He betrayed no emotion, no fear. Years of the war had hardened the scout, and his hatred for this particular Decepticon was being projected into a calm, cold stare.

"Ah little bug, acting brave?" she remarked as she began pacing in front of him with a servo placed under her chin, "You know Arcee was exactly the same, acting all brave and resilient. Of course, that was before I snuffed out Tailgate. Then she fell to tiny pieces right before my optics. It was quite entertaining, actually."

He stiffened ever so slightly at the mention of his female teammate; and if she had noticed, she didn't let on.

Hearing no response from the yellow Autobot, she spun around and strode towards him until she was within inch of the scout. She brought her head close to him and smiled eerily.

"Oh, you think you can take more that she did?" she questioned curiously, "Maybe you wouldn't feel that way if I brought in your little human friend. Raf, was it? I think I would have a glorious time playing with him."

That hit a chord.

Bumblebee's helm began to vibrate angrily and his optics shook with fury. Airachnid laughed quietly then persisted to egg the yellow scout on, "Or maybe I'll bring him and Arcee too. Then we'd really have a party."

The yellow scout's optics turned towards hers and he glared menacingly. His glare was almost venomous, with Airachnid nearly stepping back in surprise at the rage and anger the normally adorable yellow Autobot could exhibit.

She quickly regained control of the situation and commented, "Well, so there is a hidden rage behind that childish appearance. Interesting, you might even be more fun to crack than Arcee was."

Bumblebee finally spoke, beeping a message to her.

Airachnid raised an eyebrow before responding, "Oh? You don't think I ever cracked Arcee? Well, we'll just have to prove you wrong then."

She then brought her long, skinny, spiderlike arm near his torso. Bumblebee didn't flinch, he only stared her down, ready to challenge anything she tried.

She smirked at his resilience then began tracing her arm up his torso and began stroking his face with it.

"Such an adorable little scout; it's really a shame," she sighed with mock regret.

She then raised her skinny arm to drive it into his faceplate when the door slid open and Breakdown stumbled in.

Airachnid lowered her arm in frustration before turning towards the big Decepticon.

"What is it Breakdown? Can't you see I'm in the middle of something!" she remarked irritated.

"Lord Megatron would like a word with the prisoner," he reported gruffly before turning around and walking out of the room.

Airachnid frowned slightly then turned around to Bumblebee and grabbed his chin.

"Until later then, my little Bee," she crooned before letting go and stepping out.

A minute after she left, Bumblebee tensed once again as he sensed _him_.

Megatron.

The Decepticon leader strode in proudly and stopped in front of the yellow Autobot. With his enormous size and height was practically looking down at the captured scout.

He didn't say anything as he stared through his frightening scarlet optics. Then the former lord protector of Cybertron smirked before beginning, "I suppose I should thank you for bringing me back, scout. That being said, I would like to know what Optimus and your rag tag group of Autobots did with my disgusting excuse for a second-in-command, Starscream?"

Bumblebee didn't respond.

"The silent treatment, eh?" Megatron continued amused, "That won't keep you alive here, scout."

Still no response.

"It would be wise to tell me now before I rip something else you value, and I can assure you, it will be far worse than losing your voice box. Imagine losing your spark," Megatron threatened lightly, but his threat was no joke.

Bumblebee knew of the stories of the unfortunate souls who died at Megatron's servo.

He was almost one of them years ago.

He stifled a shiver and remained silent.

"Suit yourself. We have ways to make you speak. Figuratively speaking of course," he chuckled evilly before walking out of the room.

Pausing at the door way, "And don't even think about contacting the others. Your signals have been shut down by the ship."

Once the Decepticon leader left, Bumblebee relaxed his body and began searching for an escape route. He had to get out before Airachnid returned.

He was all on his own.

…..

Meanwhile, back at the Autobot base, the Autobots were standing around attempting to find a solution to their friend's predicament. Arcee had finally stopped her pacing and was currently standing beside a worried Jack and Raf. Bulkhead was agitated, and couldn't seem to keep still. He paced around the room until finally Ratchet exploded.

"Bulkhead, cease your pacing. You're creating a hole as big as your aft," Ratchet snapped.

The green Autobot stopped and gave the medic a sheepish look before attempting to stand still.

But even he could tell that Ratchet was just being even more irritated than usual. He looked worried and constantly tried to busy himself. When he found that there was nothing to do, he sighed in frustration and turned to Raf. He then began his attempts at reassuring the boy that their scout was resilient one. It was more like he was convincing himself.

"Bumblebee will be fine, Rafael, you'll see," Ratchet stated.

"I know," Raf answered softly.

"Then stop worrying so much," the Autobot medic returned irritated.

Everyone turned to stare at the medic who glared and turned away from his work.

Raf walked up to the medic and smiled softly to him as he said, "It will be all right, Ratchet. Bee can take care of himself."

The medic looked down at the child and gave him a hopeful smile. Then he leaned down and lifted the child gently in his servo before walking over to the others.

Arcee was no better than the others. She felt like screaming or crying. Every time she thought of her friend in Decepticon hands, her mind visited that fateful day. That was the day she watched someone offline before her.

And now, she could possible lose the most important Autobot in her life right now. The adorable, yellow scout who had cheered her up and seemed to make the sun shine in any situation; she could lose him too.

Breathing sharply, she realized how important he was to her. After losing Cliffjumper, he was everything to her. He was more than just another friend, or maybe he was more?

Now wasn't the time to figure out her relationship with him. Now was the time to act.

She couldn't lose him.

She just couldn't.

Optimus had remained silent throughout the last two hours since their friend and comrade had been captured. He stood deep in thought; and without turning towards Ratchet questioned, "Do we have Bumblebee's location?"

Ratchet responded promptly, "Yes, I have his coordinates. He is in the air."

Jack and Raf looked up with questioning expressions.

Arcee stepped forward remarking, "He's on the _Nemesis_. He's on the Decepticon warship."

Optimus nodded grimly, "Indeed, it seems that Megatron wants a word with our friend."

"What are we going to do?" Bulkhead questioned, "We can't stand here and do nothing."

"No we cannot, Bulkhead," Optimus replied simply before stepping forward.

He gazed around at the three other Autobots before beginning, "We cannot let Bumblebee offline without attempting to rescue him."

"Optimus, you don't mean you want to…?" Ratchet began as Arcee and Bulkhead looked determined to follow their leader anywhere.

"We are going to stage an assault on the Nemesis. And rescue Bumblebee in the process," Optimus finished for the Autobot doctor.

…

End of Chapter 2

Note: I hope you enjoy! Please review!


	3. Calm Before the Storm

Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers. And I don't own any of the characters.

Note: I hope you enjoy this chapter! Sorry for the late update! Blame schoolwork!

Please Review, think of it as a moral boost and push for a new chapter!  
>…<p>

Chapter 3: Calm Before the Storm

Optimus turned to his Autobot medic, "Ratchet, you will be coming to help our scout if need be."

Ratchet nodded.

Optimus then faced the former wrecker of the group, "Bulkhead, you will be coming as well. We'll need your skills."

Bulkhead saluted his commander and Optimus gave him a nod. He then turns towards Ratchet once more and opened his mouth plates to address the medic once more. When Arcee saw that the Autobot leader was not going to address her on their rescue mission she stepped forward and protested, "Optimus, with all due respect, you can't expect me to sit here and allow Airachnid to have her sick way with Bee."

Optimus turned to her with serious optics and responded, "No, Arcee, I don't. However, I was considering whether or not it would be a wise decision to allow you the chance to confront Airachnid again."

Arcee's optics widened and she questioned him cooly, "Don't you realize that I know what's at stake?"

She was forgetting her place; and the others were shocked at her sudden affront. The children's eyes widened as they stared back and forth between the Autobot leader and the female Autobot.

Optimus merely stared sadly at his warrior as Arcee stood her ground and stared back defiantly.

There was no turning back, apologies could come later, Arcee decided.

He was worth it.

Finally, Optimus sighed and stated, "If you think that is wise, Arcee, you are more than welcome to come. But please try to keep your emotions in check. For Bumblebee's sake."

Arcee nodded and with that, he turned around and approached the other two.

Arcee sighed; Optimus wasn't upset with her, only worried that she wouldn't be able to hold her feelings in check. But she would not stand there and allow another Autobot to go down. Especially when it was Bumblebee in trouble. He would have done the same for her and any of the other Autobots and their human friends. But he also meant more to her than she even realized. She just couldn't, no; she refused to even endure the thought of living without him in her life.

She needed him.

Optimus faced her again, "Be ready in an hour. We take the _Nemesis_ in an hour."

The Autobots nodded and made their way to their respective duties. Miko followed Bulkhead as Raf remained close to Ratchet, who for once wasn't grumbling to the human to get out of the way. In fact, the Autobot medic was attempting to keep the boy's spirits up by trying to distract Raf with the tools he was going to bring along on their assault. Quickly realizing the medic's intentions of cheering him up, Raf smiled slightly and began to run around fetching supplies for the medic. Arcee, meanwhile, strutted back to her room to pick up a data pad. Jack followed his Autobot guardian as she strode along the hallways towards her room. Jack finally caught up with her and inquired, "What's going on?"

Arcee turned sharply to her human charge, "Have you not been here for the last couple hours; you know, Bee was dragged by Cons?"

In response to her irritated sarcasm, Jack attempted a small smile, but even smiling slightly was difficult when their yellow scout friend was in the clutches of the enemy.

Instead, he responded, "I got that memo, Arcee. I'm talking about the defiance you just showed Optimus. Usually, once he tells you to stand down, you do."

Arcee blinked her optics at him and stated, "Your point?"

"My point is that this isn't just about Airachnid kidnapping Bee," he began before he was interrupted by the blue Autobot.

"Of course it is! She's a monster! Who knows what kind of things she going to do. The things she did to me and Tailgate…," began angrily.

"Could be done to Bumblebee," Jack finished, "Exactly."

Arcee retorted, "Then you know what's at stake. The Autobots need Bee; he's a valued member of our team and our friend."

Jack nodded, "That's all true, but what you forgot to mention was that you need him."

Arcee blinded her optics confused, "Didn't I just…"

Jack shook his head before responding, "No, you said we need him, and we do. But you need Bumblbee more than because he's your frind or your ally."

He said this softly as she stared down irritated.

"What are you trying to say? That I have feelings for Bumblebee?" she questioned quietly.

"You said it, not me," he shrugged.

Arcee watched his retreat. Raising her helm, she pondered his words then shook them quickly aside.

There was no time for these thoughts now.

…

The minute Airachnid stepped out of the room and the door slid shut, the yellow scout eased his body and groaned in pain. He was sore and was slowly leaking energon. And he hadn't recharged or refueled in hours.

He had just endured an hour of Airachnid's torture.

But he realized something, and that made the situation worse.

What Airachnid put him through in the last hour, with the stabbings, were nothing compared to what the female Decepticon was actually capable of. She was holding back.

Question was, why?

What was she waiting for?

It had to be big, he noted as he attempted to relax his body in an effort to ease the pain.

Little did he realize what the Decepticons were planning.

Nor did he know what the Autobots were planning.

…

Arcee placed her blasters on her back and checked her other weapons. The children watched as Ratceht packed medical supplies and Optmius prepared his own arsenal of weapons. Bulkhead checked his weapons as Miko looked on admiringly.

Silence filled the room except for the sound of metal clanging against metal.

Finally, the Autobots could no longer occupy themselves with any more tasks. So they looked to their leader for guidance and for the final order.

Optimus stood in front of his troops and began, "Today we attack the _Nemesis_, and we will rescue Bumblebee. Though the battle will be dangerous and might be costly, we owe it to Bumblebee to try."

The others nodded solemnly.

Bulkhead punched his palm and grinned determined as Arcee nodded and Ratchet turned on the portal.

Optimus looked back to his soldiers, grabbed his axe and said solemnly, "Till all are one!"

And with that they entered the ground bridge.

….Note: I hope you enjoy!

Please review!


	4. Final Encounter

Disclaimer: I don't own _Transformers Prime_ or any of the characters from the _Transformers_ universe.

Note: I am so so so sorry for the long wait, but here's chapter 4! This will be the final chapter because I really wanted to give you guys a present for being so supportive and patient with me. Thank you so much for everything, and I really hope you enjoy the end of this story!

Enjoy and please review!

…...

Chapter 4: Final Encounter

Seconds later and the the four Autobots stepped out of the ground bridge and onto the metallic floor of the Decepticon was ship, the _Nemesis_. Readying their cannons and other weapons, the Autobots peered across the dark hallway for any Decepticons.

Total silence filled the area.

"Autobots, move out," Optimus ordered as they began to run across the hallway in search of their Autobot scout.

"Bumblebee should be two hallways from here," Ratchet stated as he checked the tracker on his arm, "And hurry, I'm detecting energon readings nearby."

Optimus nodded as they entered a crossroads.

There standing triumphantly, was the Decepticon leader himself. Megatron sneered at the Autobot commander. Behind him stood Breakdown, Airachnid, and a large number of Vehicons. All had their weapons out and facing the intruders.

The Autobots halted their advance and glared into the optics of their enemies.

"Well, well, Optimus. Seems you've fallen for my trap," Megatron smirked as he crossed his arms across his chassis, "But you already knew that, didn't you, Prime?"

The Autobot leader narrowed his optics and responded coolly, "It was a necessary risk."

"To save that useless buy?" Airachnid cut in smiling widely.

Arcee turned fiercely on the Decepticon female and snapped, "Don't you dare call him that, witch!"  
>Airachnid merely smirked then answered slyly, "Touchy, aren't we?"<p>

Arcee's glare intensified and she made a move to charge at the spiderbot, but Optimus's servo halted in firmly in her place.

Never once removing his steely gaze from Megatron's optics, he demanded, "Let Bumblebee go and we'll leave quietly, Megatron."

At this, the Decepticon leader laughed, "You really are a fool, Prime. The scout stays, and so will you. On this day, it will be remembered that I finally extinguished the spark of the last Prime and destroyed the last of his so-called legendary warriors who stupidly stood in my way on this planet!"

The last Prime frowned and fiercely but calmly responded, "Then we'll take the ship, and you with it."

Megatron smirked as he turned his servo into a long and deadly sharp blade, "I look forward to your failure today, Optimus."

Optimus brought his ax from behind him and wielded it facing the Decepticon leader, firmly stating, "One shall stand...,"

"And one shall fall, I know how it goes, Prime. Now get on with it!" Megatron retorted impatiently.

Optimus managed a small smirk, "Always the impatient one. Autobots, take them down."

And with that the battle began.

…

Bulkhead smashed his mace servo into Breakdown's faceplate, pushing the con backwards and slamming him into the wall. Breakdown recovered quickly and then swung his hammer toward Bulkhead but the former Autobot wrecker slammed his mace into the hammer to defend his body. Ratchet was holding his own at he shot and cut down Vehicons rushing his way. The medic may have been passed his prime for warfare, but he still packed a wallop. And Optimus and Megatron were locked in an epic battle of the wills and weapons, each side taking what the other threw at the other and responding with harder, faster blows. Neither side had the advantage, with both sides locked in a deadlock.

Arcee was battling out with the female Decepticon. Fiercely, she parried each hit Airachnid sent her way, and she responded with an array of acrobatics and expert weapons usage against the spiderbot. All the while Airachnid was smirking and taunting the blue Autobot as she circled around Arcee in their battle.

Despite everything she was told and taught in her life, Arcee couldn't stop herself from allowing her emotions to take control of the situation.

And that could prove extremely dangerous if she didn't do something about it.

"What have you done to Bee?" Arcee seethed as she shot out her foot, which Airachnid deftly caught and used Arcee's loss of control to throw the blue Autobot across the hall.

"Nothing yet, Arcee. I was waiting for you. We wouldn't want you to miss the show, now would we?" Airachnid commented gleefully as she gazed down at the heap Arcee was currently in on the floor.

Arcee managed to glare up at the female Decepticon and sprang up. She then charged the spider Decepticon, alternating her blades with her blasters. Airachnid managed to avoid these blows and pressed on, "It's really a wonder, Arcee. On the verge of losing a third partner, and you still haven't realized that it's you; it's your fault."

Arcee suddenly lost it and savagely rushed at Airachnid, blindly shooting at the Decepticon female.

Bringing her blasters to the Decepticon, Arcee yelled, "This is for Tailgate and Bumblebee!"

Airachnid smiled coldly as Arcee began to pull the trigger on her blasters.

She was so close, so close to finally offlining the one who had caused her so much pain and misery.

Suddenly, something heavy and hard slammed into Arcee from behind, knowing her out cold.

Knockout stepped over Arcee over to Airachnid's side. They shared an amused look before staring at the fallen Autobot.

Had Arcee been paying attention to her surroundings and less on her feelings of vengeance, she would have noticed that Airachnid was luring her away from the others during their fight.

Now, Airachnid had her and Bumblebee as captives.

Laughing as she enjoyed the moment, the female Decepticon exclaimed, "Now the real fun begins."

"Indeed." Knockout agreed.

…

Arcee groaned as she shook her helm. She opened her optics slowly and adjusted to the dimness of the room. She then glanced up to see Bumblebee hanging by his arms in Decepticon restraints and giving her a worried expression. She felt dread creep up on her as she noted that she too had been hanging with cuffs on her servos. She felt the familiar panic steadily arising inside of her as the memories of the past threatened to overwhelm her completely.

Desperate to shake out these dismal thoughts, Arcee gazed into Bumblebee's pained optics. He was weary and was covered in scratches and dents. Energon was leaking slowly from his chassis and he was abnormally still. Arcee surmised that he probably was in more pain than he looked and that his injuries were worse than they really appeared, but she couldn't tell for sure.

_Where was Ratchet when you needed him?_ she thought angrily.

Bumblebee returned her stare with an upset and disappointed expression.

_You shouldn't have come after me_, he beeped steadily.

Arcee parted her mouthplates to respond when she froze at the sound of light footsteps.

In strolled Airachnid looking positively joyful as she stepped between the two Autobot prisoners.

She walked deliberately slowly towards Bumblebee, smirking as his optics glared icely at her.

The spider Decepticon raised her servo to his faceplate and stroked his head almost as if she was attempting to comfort him in her sick twisted way.

"Aw, are you still angry at me, Bee?" I thought bringing Arcee to our little party would make you forgive me," she mock pouted as his body stiffened and his glare grew more fierce.

Airachnid sighed and shrugged her shoulders, "There's just no pleasing you, bug."

She then turned her red optics to the blue Autobot hanging from the ceiling.

"But maybe you can convince him to lighten up, Arcee. Remember how much fun we had with you, me, and of course Tailgate," she grinned, "We shouldn't' forget about how delightful he was!"

Arcee grew furious, and spit out, "Don't you dare mention him!"

Airachnid approached the blue Autobot until she was only about a couple inches away from Arcee's faceplate. She tilted her head and stated lightly, "But Arcee, I was merely trying to tell him about the fun Tailgate had, so knows what to expect from this little get together."

Arcee's optics widened, "You wouldn't."

"You know I would," the Decepticon female answered, "Well, he is your partner isn't he? He deserves to participate in the tradition. You know the tradition that seems to befall every Autobot partner you've had."

Bumblebee looked over at Arcee and shot her a warning look.

But Arcee didn't pay attention. She grew angrier and threatened, "If you so much as lay another servo on him, I'll..."

Airachnid laughed, as if Arcee was being cute, "What will you do?"

She began pacing in front of the two.

"Even if there is the slightest chance that your Autobot comrades don't die at the servos of lord Megatron, they won't make it in time to save you both," Airachnid explained as she examined the tips of her servos, "By then, I will have already extinguished the scout's spark."

The female Decepticon then faced Arcee before her expression turned cold as she slowly said, "Just like Tailgate."

Arcee's optics became panicked as she trembled. Flashbacks to the day she lost Tailgate appeared vividly in front of her optics. Seeing him off-lined, then when help arrived too late, her screams...

She remembered that horrid day, of how she couldn't save Tailgate.

She gasped out desperately, "No!"

Airachnid smirked, enjoying every second of watching the blue Autobot slipping into fear and panic.

"No? I don't think you realize that you have no say in the matter," the spider Decepticon glowered.

The yellow scout tried desperately to tell Arcee to calm down, but his communication was clearly down from whatever Airachnid had done to him; so all he had were his pleading optics.

He tried his best to reassure her but to no avail as Arcee sank deeper and deeper into desperation.

Airachnid smiled as she walked over to Bumblebee, who didn't even make the effort to glare at her; his optics were glued sadly on the pathetic hollow shadow of the female Autobot across him. Airachnid smirked then reached her servo to his faceplates and offered him a fake sympathetic look.

"Bee, I'd say my last remarks before your spark turns off," she offered in mock kindness.

He didn't even shove his helm away, his spark breaking over Arcee's anguish and his failure to calm her.

"Please," Arcee managed, her optics wide, "Not him."

"What was that?" Airachnid questioned, turning her optics to the blue female.

"Take me instead," she offered desperately, "Don't kill him, Airachnid."

"And why shouldn't I kill him now?" Airachnid wondered.

Arcee faltered, her thoughts racing as she tried to find a way to save Bumblebee. She was practically hysterical and had no control as she blurted out, "I can't bear to watch him die, Airachnid, kill me instead."

Airachnid's optics widened and she sneered, "So you do care for him, perhaps you even love him?"

Bumblebee's optics widened and when he caught Arcee's gaze, Airachnid found confirmation for her question.

The scout lowered his head sadly, his voice cracking as he asked Airachnid to let Arcee go.

"Please, stop this madness!" Arcee begged.

Airachnid gave them both triumphant expressions, "What is with all this demanding? You'd think you two were in charge around here."

She slapped Arcee's helm, then hissed, "I'm going to torture you both; and then end you as I should have done eons ago."

The spider Decepticon then whipped around and stabbed a pincer into Bumblebee's chests.

He shook violently and suddenly, his optics shut off and he became still.

Arcee's screams filled the hallway.

Airachnid pulled her pincer out, now dripping in Bumblebee's energon and turned to glower at Arcee.

"And now my game and revenge is complete," she stated softly, "After I end you, of course."

Arcee couldn't even muster the strength to glare at the Decepticon who had just taken another mech she had fallen for.

She lowered her head listlessly and waited.

She hears two blasts and a sudden clang. Then suddenly, something slammed into her chassis hard.

But there's no searing pain after that.

Strange.

Arcee finally opened her optics and gazed down.

Laying on the floor, was a motionless Airachnid. Her spider-like legs were scattered in a heap around her. No doubt when the spider Decepticon was being knocked out she had slammed into Arcee.

But what had knocked the Decepticon unconscious?

She glanced up and felt immense relief wash over her.

Bumblebee was standing on the floor in front of her, very much alive, as he removed the shackles from his arms. He glanced up at her and smiled widely, and Arcee felt practically giddy with happiness.

First things first; she decided she needed to know how he managed to save them both.

"Explain, now," she ordered as she relaxed.

He nodded and approached her; then he transformed his servo into a cannon. He shot the restraints on her arms and she dropped to the floor on her feet.

_When she turned away towards you, it gave me enough time to slam my legs against her and knock her out_, he explained through broken beeps as he broke the restraints around her arms, _And luckily, her restraints only kept our arms tied, not our servos. So I managed to transform my servo into my blaster to shoot the chains off. _

"So you played dead?" Arcee asked, "But why didn't you try to escape earlier?"

He smiled, _Autobot scouts have to be skilled at escape; we're always at risk for capture. I was waiting for the right time, no use to escape from this room if the rest of the ships is crawling with Decepticons._

"So you waited for us, knowing we'd come after you," Arcee finished as he nodded again.

_I knew you guys would come if you could_, he answered.

Arcee smiled widely and wrapped her arms around him. She then pressed her helm against his chassis. He stiffened then wrapped his own arms around her.

She said softly, "I nearly died back there."

And she hadn't meant it literally.

Bumblebee's gaze softened, "I know. I'm sorry I scared you."

She stepped back and shoved him back angrily, "Then what kind of stunt was that? I thought you were dead! Do you know what that felt like?"

Bumblebee looked confused but before he could respond, Arcee grabbed his helm and brought him down so that he was level with her. His optics widened as she kissed him, but then he wrapped his arms around her once again, closed his optics, and enjoyed the moment.

Pulling away, Arcee gave him a stern look, "Don't ever do something like that without warning me first, got that scout?"

He nodded and gazed down to her with a warm look that filled her with a happiness she hadn't felt in a very long time.

Arcee's helm jerks to the side as the noises came from outside the room.

"That's our rescue party," she stated, "Raf is going to be so happy to see you when we get back."

The yellow Autobot smiled again but then winced. He brought a hand to his chassis, which was bleeding energon. He leaned against the wall for support; clearly his injuries were worse than Arcee had realized. She looked sympathetically at him as he gasped in pain. He glanced up and grabbed her servo with his free one and pulled her close to him. They stood there silently holding hands, waiting for help to arrive.

"Ratchet isn't going to be happy about this," she commented as she leaned her helm against his arm.

"No, I certainly am not," the medic himself stated as he walked in followed by the others.

…

A couple minutes later, and the Autobots walked out of the ground bridge. Bulkhead was supporting Bumblebee as he limped in.

"Bee! You're okay!" Raf exclaimed as he rushed over to his friend.

Jack and Miko followed with the widest grins any of them had seen.

Raf hugged his friend's leg and the two began talking animatedly as if Bumblebee hadn't been kidnapped only moments before.

Jack walked over to Arcee and glanced up, "I'm glad you're okay, Arcee."

"Thanks to Bee," she answered slightly irritated, "We came in to save him, and he ends up saving me."

Her human friend gave her a sly look, "I take it you hate being the damsel in distress?"

Her frown spoke volumes and he changed the subject, "So, did you learn anything about yourself today?"

She glanced over at Bumblebee and her gaze softened, "I did."

Jack followed her gaze and smirked, "Something to do with a certain yellow Autobot?"

"Maybe," Arcee answered, "But that's all you're hearing from me."

Her optics caught Bumblebee's and his smile gave her what the humans would describes as butterflies.

Maybe Tailgate and Cliffjumper were gone, but she still had Bumblebee.

…...

There's the final part! I hope you enjoyed this story. Thank you all for your support and your patience; I hope that this final part was worthy of your time.

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